Thanks for the summary. Interesting to see some of the dynamics behind the scenes. Good thoughts on the Lin contract too... I think we just have to find a way to make this work as is.

edit: It's also interesting to note how we've seen rumors of both D-mo and Thaddeus Young demanding trades. If these rumors have any truth to them, I find it hard to believe that the Sixers and Rockets can't get something done.

I think he's saying that Lin is mostly un-tradable thanks to his contract, basing the similarity of Asik's contract and on the premise that PGs are easier to find than a 7 foot center of Asik's caliber.

Only relevant thing I heard about Lin is his back spasms are worse than Parsons. Morey watched him and said he looked OK at the beginning of practice but as it went on his back was obviously bothering him so he doesn't look good for tonight. Lin also sounded like he wasn't able to do much in his practice interview yesterday. Lin's contract is what it is and he got it based on solid performance, projected improvement and other factors as a Knick. He's been a solid player this year and hope he gets back to health soon and can continue on his fine play earlier in the season to help the team.

-Guess some NBA owners (in this case, perhaps we are talking about Josh Harris, owner of the Sixers?) are just cheapskates and got scared when hearing the word "fifteen million dollars."

-Perhaps more important, it seems that a lot of the NBA owners/front office don't quite know how to appreciate the great impact made by Omer Asik on the court even after watching him start for a full season and playing well in meaningful minutes in Chicagio for two more. The guys who scoffed at Morey's offer to Asik are still not buying into the analytics and scouting leading to that offer.

-I wonder how much of the issue is owners not wanting to risk a negative public reaction of "OMG, you traded all that for a backup C?"

-Morey's approach to Asik appears to be one where they leverage the other teams' lack of trade interest into some sort of solidarity between the team and Asik.

"Look Omer, those other guys just don't love you the way we do. They don't want to pay you $15M, we do. We never wanted to hurt your feelings when we signed Dwight (who, by the way, loves you to) and we only tried to trade you because we love you and want to honor your wishes. Let's show those sons of bitches what they are really missing."

No one is untradeable, even Be Well got dumped off. Morey could always swap Lin's bad contract for another bad contract or he could swap Lin for more cap friendly assets by sweetening the pot with a pick or a well regarded rookie.

-Guess some NBA owners (in this case, perhaps we are talking about Josh Harris, owner of the Sixers?) are just cheapskates and got scared when hearing the word "fifteen million dollars."

-Perhaps more important, it seems that a lot of the NBA owners/front office don't quite know how to appreciate the great impact made by Omer Asik on the court even after watching him start for a full season and playing well in meaningful minutes in Chicagio for two more. The guys who scoffed at Morey's offer to Asik are still not buying into the analytics and scouting leading to that offer.

-I wonder how much of the issue is owners not wanting to risk a negative public reaction of "OMG, you traded all that for a backup C?"

-Morey's approach to Asik appears to be one where they leverage the other teams' lack of trade interest into some sort of solidarity between the team and Asik.

"Look Omer, those other guys just don't love you the way we do. They don't want to pay you $15M, we do. We never wanted to hurt your feelings when we signed Dwight (who, by the way, loves you to) and we only tried to trade you because we love you and want to honor your wishes. Let's show those sons of bitches what they are really missing."

It's a lot of money for a guy who can't catch a basketball. I knew from the very start we won't be able to trade Asik for anything good. Seems the offers were so bad that they just thought it's better to keep him

It's a lot of money for a guy who can't catch a basketball. I knew from the very start we won't be able to trade Asik for anything good. Seems the offers were so bad that they just thought it's better to keep him

Here's a thought. Owners didn't like the poison pill contract strategy, and would rather not reward the Rockets by letting them off the hook. They'd still do a deal with Morey, but it's going to have to be sweetened more than he's willing. I suspect there are quite a few chuckles taking place around the league right now.

Hope Omer can regroup, and find a way to be a effective member of the team this year. It's amazing actually given the injuries and the static surrounding Asik and sometimes Lin this season, how well the Rockets have done so far. Still see a lot of promise with this team.

It's a lot of money for a guy who can't catch a basketball. I knew from the very start we won't be able to trade Asik for anything good. Seems the offers were so bad that they just thought it's better to keep him

Here's a thought. Owners didn't like the poison pill contract strategy, and would rather not reward the Rockets by letting them off the hook. They'd still do a deal with Morey, but it's going to have to be sweetened more than he's willing. I suspect there are quite a few chuckles taking place around the league right now.

It looks like Morey has to swallow the poison pill.

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"I learned long ago, never to wrestle with a pig. You get dirty, and besides, the pig likes it."

It's under the "Thoughts" section. Not only does Jeremy Lin have an identical contract to Omer Asik's, he's at the exact same point in the timeline of the contract. And not only that -- he's the only player in the league you can say that about.